SARASOTA, Fla.- Two Arkansas Linemen have helped restore power for communities after natural disasters before, but this time, they saved lives while on standby for Hurricane Helene.
It’s now been a week since Helene stormed into Florida as a Category four hurricane, taking at least 200 lives with hundreds still missing. Tommy Littell and Tom Nettrouer remember the night all too well.
“We thought we were going to be on standby, but we actually ended up going to work,” Littell said.
The search for the missing hits snags at every corner as Helene’s death toll tops 200 Littell and Nettrouer were at their hotel in Sarasota, Florida when the power went out. They then went to their truck to charge their phones.
“We were sitting in the truck and saw a guy run by,” Littell said. “We went down there to check it out, we looked over the wall and there was a guy hanging over the ledge by his fingertips.”
According to Nettrouer, the man was swept up in the flooding, which was nearly five to six feet high on the lower level of the area. The man had grabbed hold of the hotel’s side rail, which was hanging in by a thread.
“We immediately ran to the truck to see if there was anything we could use. Luckily, we had a rachet strap,” Littell said. “I got back over there, went and just got him out, went over the wall, and Tom pulled us back out.”
Nettrouer said the rain, floods, and wind came in quicker than most thought.
One of the hotel managers watched Nettrouer and Littell help the man over the ledge and asked them for help with two employees stuck in the lower lobby level.
“We looked at each other, had to get her done, and agreed we would go help,” Littell said. “We formulated a game plan and ended up having to pull them up through their trash compact chute.”
After Helene cuts roads, power, phones, Southerners stay in touch the old-fashioned way The Regional General Manager at the Westin Sarasota wrote a letter explaining the heroic actions of the linemen to their company.
“This was an incredible act of bravery and support from Tommy and Tom, who didn’t have to get involved but did so as good Samaritans,” the letter said “You should be very proud of these two individuals, and they deserve recognition for their extraordinary efforts. On behalf of our team at the Westin Sarasota, we want to express our deepest gratitude to these two gentlemen for their support last night.”
Littell said it was never for recognition; that wasn’t even a thought, but helping was.
“I mean, I think God put us in the right place at the right time,” Nettrouer said.
Hurricane Helene’s victims include first responders who died helping others Littell and Nettrouer are now in Georgia, continuing to restore power for communities.
“I think we are going to be here a good minute to be honest with you, it’s pretty bad,” Nettrouer said.
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